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    Thread: poorly designed dipsticks

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      poorly designed dipsticks

      The dipstick for the transmission fluid is black. Nearly impossible to see the transmission fluid against the black dipstick. The dipstick for the engine oil is light metallic. Nearly impossible to see fresh oil against the light metallic dipstick. Am I the only one that thinks the engineers got these colors wrong?



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      is this an oxymoron?


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      It may be accidental but there are cars where it is possible to get an effortless, accurate reading from the dipsticks. Not with my 2005 Aveo LS.

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      Still love my daily driver Thymeclock's Avatar
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      Quote Originally Posted by wuwei37405 View Post
      It may be accidental but there are cars where it is possible to get an effortless, accurate reading from the dipsticks. Not with my 2005 Aveo LS.
      Why is this a problem for you? The whole purpose of the dipstick is to check the fluid level. If you can see the fluid on the stick, you can read the level. The fluid condition is another matter entirely. On some GM models there is no dipstick at all for the A/T. IMHO, having any dipstick is better than having none.

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      I can only talk about my car because I do not have access to yours. I have a hard time reading the dipsticks on my car. For instance, my car has a dark colored dipstick to read a dark colored (transmission) fluid. Wouldn't it make more sense from a engineering/design point of view to provide a light colored dipstick for this purpose? My opinion is that the engineering/design team did not give this item enough thought.
      Last edited by wuwei37405; 12-21-2011 at 12:03 PM.

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      What do you mean there's no turbo? trempus's Avatar
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      you can use a piece of white paper towel that you lay your dipstick on, this way it's doesn't matter what color dipstick or oil you'll be able to see it

      2004 chevy aveo---
      2006 chevy uplander

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      i hear what ur sayin wuwei colour change could make a big difference.you say your AT stick is dark and so is your AT fluid, i hope your fluid is red not brown in there! but when i change my engine oil, my oil is really clean,thin synthetic so i do have a hard time gettin a good reading,check double check...triple check...white dipsticks you can mas market them ill buy 2 for each of my vehicles for you

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      Still love my daily driver Thymeclock's Avatar
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      Quote Originally Posted by wuwei37405 View Post
      I can only talk about my car because I do not have access to yours. I have a hard time reading the dipsticks on my car. For instance, my car has a dark colored dipstick to read a dark colored (transmission) fluid. Wouldn't it make more sense from a engineering/design point of view to provide a light colored dipstick for this purpose? My opinion is that the engineering/design team did not give this item enough thought.
      If your transmission fluid is that dark, it is time to change it.

      Often the dipstick for the transmission is made of a very flexible steel, which is why it is never a light color. However, if you look at the stick at an angle in sufficiently bright light, you will be able to see what the reading of the fluid is on the stick. It basically comes down to knowing what to look for.

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      Hypothetically when you check your tranny fluid typically wouldnt you wipe it down first? I'm sure you'd see the color if you used paper towels.
      Missing our beloved 1st gen Aveos everyday!
      Silence is golden. Duct tape is silver!!
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      Chevoo-1/2 Chevy, 1/2 Daewoo. I mean like WTF?

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      I appreciate all the feedback. I will try to implement the advice. Thanks.





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